


Another Woman?

by DualWieldingCousland (DualWieldingMama)



Series: Starting Over [22]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-30
Updated: 2018-04-30
Packaged: 2019-04-30 03:12:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14487585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DualWieldingMama/pseuds/DualWieldingCousland
Summary: What happens when someone from Alistair's past makes an appearance?  Regan learns that trying to lose herself in work can be difficult when you work with family.





	1. Thursday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alistair gets asked to work late ... again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an extremely short chapter, partially to make up for the next chapter being SO much longer

5:10 PM

_Please don’t hate me_

 

Regan paused the game and eyed her phone curiously. The text was from Alistair, but why would there be any risk of her hating him? She tapped out a quick reply before returning her attention to the game. She’d only _just_ made it out of the character creator after spending what felt like an eternity getting her character’s appearance and skills just right and it was imperative that she at least make _some_ progress.

_What could you possibly do that would make me hate you?_

 

Over an hour passed before the response came.

_Duncan asked me to work late tonight._

_One of the guys from the night shift called in_

_And he caught me off guard_

_And I just sort of said yes without thinking_

Regan sighed softly and shook her head at the speed of his texts; he must be sneaking his phone while on patrol. Duncan _really_ needed to find some other people to cover last minute shifts. She couldn’t count the number of times Alistair had been his go-to security guard whenever anyone else called in. He almost never refused, partially because it _did_ give him leverage when he needed a day off, but still ….

_I don’t hate you. You can make it up to me Friday, dearheart. And tell Duncan I say he owes you a day off._

_I will._

_I love you_

_I’ll be home as soon as I can_

She smiled faintly and tapped out her reply before returning her attention to the game. Since he wasn’t going to be home any time soon, she had a little more time to make some progress in this game before taking Jasper for his nightly walk.

_Love you too. See you when you get home._


	2. Friday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Strange gifts show up during a meeting. Someone from Alistair's past shows up at work. Regan actually agrees to show up to a meeting in person?

** 7:30 am **

Sending the alarm clock bouncing off the wall and down the hall was not how he’d intended on his morning starting, but Maker why did it come so soon? And why had he agreed to stay at work late when he _knew_ he had an early long shift? Jory owed him big time for this. And to make matters worse, Goldanna had shown up. He hadn’t seen her since they’d split up, and he’d been perfectly happy with that. But she’d at least been polite, almost friendly, and they’d chatted about this and that for a few minutes before she headed off to finish whatever shopping she was doing.

 “Do we need to go buy a new alarm clock after work?”

 Hearing Regan’s amused voice call out brought a sheepish smile to his face. At least she didn’t _sound_ angry about the flying alarm clock. “No. I’m sure it’s fine. I didn’t hear an actual crash.” He hurriedly threw on his uniform from the night before and jogged down the hall, grabbing the offending clock on the way. “I just _really_ am not ready for morning yet. I can’t decide if Duncan is punishing me for something, or he simply forgot I was scheduled for a long shift today.”

Smiling, she shoved away from her computer and skipped over to give him a tight hug. “I’m sure he just forgot.” She kissed him, barely brushing her lips against his a few times before he managed to wrap his arms around her and pull her close. “As soon as my conference calls are done, I’ll try and come up and see you, alright?” A few more soft kisses danced across his lips, earning her a soft purr and fingers threaded in her hair.

“You’re making it _really_ difficult to leave for work, love.” In truth, all she needed to say was that she wanted him to stay home and he’d call out sick in a heartbeat. Alistair had hated the fact that he didn’t get home until after she’d passed out, especially since she’d fallen asleep on the couch with their game system still running. He’d carried her into bed and she’d curled up against him as soon as he’d climbed in, but it wasn’t the same as falling asleep _with_ her. The light laugh his comment earned brought a happy smile to his face despite his disappointment that she didn’t ask him to stay.

“Maybe you’ll tell Duncan no next time he asks you to work late,” she teased, kissing his nose. “But I _will_ try to come up and see you after my last conference call.” A quick glance at her watch earns an annoyed sigh. “But _that_ call has to wait until _this_ call is done.” She manages one more kiss, flicking her tongue out to just barely tickle his lips, before returning to her computer and situating the headset. “Have a good day at work, love. Jasper and I will see you soon.”

 

 

** 12:15 pm **

“Um, one moment everyone. There is … someone at the door.” Regan put her phone on mute and tugged the headset off, pausing the meeting to answer the insistent knocking. She wasn’t expecting anyone, and Alistair wasn’t due home for another several hours. Plus, he had his key; she’d seen it herself, dangling from the keyring with his car keys. Luckily, everyone on the call knew she worked from home, so it wasn’t a huge deal. She pulled the door open and frowned. “Can I help you?”

“Delivery, ma’am?” A slight young man looked up at her, holding out a pad and pen. “Just need your signature here.”

With a confused look, Regan scribbled her name on the indicated screen before handing it back. She was fairly certain neither of them were _expecting_ anything, and the delivery man’s nondescript uniform didn’t give her any clues either. “Thanks. Who is it …?” She didn’t get a chance to finish the question before the delivery man handed her a box and a vase of flowers and scurried off, practically running out the door. She didn’t realize why until she turned around, box in hand, to see Jasper’s massive form behind her. “I guess he doesn’t like dogs?”

“So who are these for?” She plucked the card from the middle of the bundle of red and orange roses and skimmed the note. Then she read it again, slower. And a third time, studying each word as her stomach knotted and heart dropped like a stone. The card slid easily back into the plastic stand before she mechanically returned to her desk and resumed the call, forcing her voice into an approximation of the tone she’d carried before the interruption. “Terribly sorry about that. An insistent Chantry sister wanted to extol the virtues of the Maker. Now, I know we can’t cover everything over the phone on a Friday afternoon, so I’ll be in the Kirkwall office with Fergus for the in-person portion of this meeting Monday.” She ignored her brother’s surprised response, going on like nothing was strange. “But for now, let’s continue with what we can.”

 

 

** 3:00 PM **

Alistair yawned, struggling to stay awake and upright as he walked his route, checking in with the kiosk and store employees, giving the occasional direction to a lost shopper, and making sure any potential troublemakers noticed security’s presence. It was _finally_ nearly lunch, and he wanted to at least shoot his girlfriend a text to see how her meetings were going. Maybe send her a racy text or two; nothing that would get either of them in trouble should anyone be looking over his shoulder, of course. Maybe it was silly, since he’d just seen her before leaving the apartment, but he missed her. More than a small part of him hoped she _would_ show up and surprise him. 

“There you are, Alistair.”

 He groaned under his breath; as much as he hated to admit it, he knew that voice. Twice in the same week? Really? It had been _how many_ years without a single trace of contact and now twice in as many days? “Goldanna.” Alistair did his best to keep his tone neutral. It wouldn’t do to have someone walk by and hear him being rude or snide to a mall patron. The paperwork for that kind of report would be a nightmare, even _if_ Duncan remembered how everything with her had gone down. “Doing some more shopping?”

“Something like that. I ran into your brother the other day.” The redhead wrapped her arms around him, ignoring the fact that he didn’t return the embrace. “He was telling me about your charming apartment and how you were working at one of my _favorite_ places and I just _had_ to come by and see you. And since it was so late last night, we didn’t get much time to talk.” She finally released him, though a well-manicured hand managed to remain on his arm, keeping her just a hair too close for his comfort. “When do you get to take a break?” 

Alistair cleared his throat, glancing around. No one seemed to be paying attention to them, thank the Maker. “Well, I _am_ at work, Goldanna. I can’t really stand around chatting with patrons for long. And I’ll be breaking for lunch as soon as my girlfriend gets here.” What did her running into Cailan have to do with anything? And what in the Maker’s name would he know about Alistair’s apartment? The last time _they’d_ talked, he was still in his own place, the relationship with Regan only starting to get serious. What would he know about how charming _any_ place Alistair lived was? And for that matter, since when did she want to see him when he wasn’t spending money on _her_ or carrying her bags. “Did you need something?”

The redhead moved closer, leaned in like she was whispering something, fingers touching and tracing and being far more familiar than someone shopping would be with security. Regan was too far away to hear, but she could see. The fingers dancing along his bare arm. The smile on that woman’s face as she wrapped an arm around Alistair and brought her lips to his. The damned foot-pop … _her_ leg rising behind her like in those stupid rom-coms Oriana loved dragging her to when they had a _girl’s night_. A quick hand on Jasper’s head stopped the growl that had started rumbling in his chest. “Let’s go, Jas. We … have places to be.”

 

 

**9:30 PM**

Alistair let his head thump against the door as he dug for his keys. Not only had his ex-girlfriend shown up out of the blue and _kissed_ him at work for reasons unknown, but the one thing he _had_ been looking forward to all day – Regan coming to work for a visit – never happened. But it was Friday, and all he could think of was curling up with _her_ on the couch, eating good food, and watching bad movies until they passed out on the couch. He swung the door open and called out for Regan before noticing a bouquet of roses sitting next to a neatly wrapped box on the dining table. “Aww, Reg … you shouldn’t have.”

No response. Not even a woof from Jasper. Alistair told himself he wasn’t worried; it was perfectly possible that they had gone out for a walk … in the dark. So why was there this nagging feeling at the back of his mind? He tried to remember if he’d noticed whether her SUV was in the parking lot or not. “Regan?” He tried again, wandering down the hall and peeking into the spare office before making it into the bedroom. “You will not believe who showed up at work today.” No answer. No one was in the room. A second glance at the bed allowed him to notice an envelope resting on his pillow.

His stomach dropped. The last time he found an empty apartment and a note, Regan had been getting ready to go through that whole ordeal with the man who killed her parents. Maker, it couldn’t be something like that _again_ , could it? Hands shaking, he ripped open the envelope and unfolded the note. He had to read it twice to make any sense of it, and even then he didn’t quite understand. She had a meeting in Highever on Monday. Ok; that he could believe. But why would she have gone _today_ instead of later in the weekend? But what was that she wrote about the flowers and last night? And what’s more, the note said she was on her way to the mall to see him. But he _knew_ she’d never made it; he hadn’t seen her there at all. Just Goldanna.

Alistair moved quickly back to the dining table and grabbed the card from the flowers. He didn’t think his stomach could fall any further, but as each word registered, it felt as though everything was sinking. “ _Last night was wonderful_? What in the Maker’s name is she talking about? _I can’t stop thinking about that thing you did with your hands …_? **What** thing with my hands? I didn’t do **anything** with my hands last night.” He didn’t know what was going on. Why was _Goldanna_ sending him flowers and a box of expensive cheese? Why was she talking about something that didn’t happen? He had been at work and then came straight home and crawled into bed with Regan.

“Oh no.” 

Frantic, he looked back at the note Regan had written. There it was, short and written in neat script … the deliberate handwriting he’d seen on countless documents she’d prepare for work. _I tried to wait up for you, but I guess_ Duncan _had a special project for you last night, if the flowers on the table are any indication. Thank you for not waking me. I will swing by work to give you a chance to explain before Jasper and I head to Highever._ But … she’d never come by. Why had she never come by? She hadn’t even texted him. Quickly, he dug out his phone and hit the button to call her.

 

 

**10:00 PM**

Regan helped Fergus unload their suitcases onto the hotel’s trolley while Jasper did his best to charm the bellhop. “Seriously, Fergus; we’re only here for a couple days. Why in the Maker’s name did you bring _three_ suitcases?” Everything she needed for the next few days had managed to fit into one suitcase. A second case held Jasper’s essentials. But somehow, her darling brother had managed to spread his belongings into three different cases – two larger than the third. And she was willing to bet the smallest suitcase held shoes.

Fergus laughed, loading the last of their things onto the luggage cart. “ _You_ are only here for a couple days. I’ve got to be here for the entire week.” Honestly, he hadn’t even expected his sister to be here for the first two days. She hated speaking in front of people and would normally do whatever it took to avoid being face-to-face with people during these meetings. And that was fine. He had no problem being the face of the company, as Regan called him. As long as he had her behind the scenes, he knew they were fine. “Oriana is flying up with Oren Tuesday night, so she sent a lot of their things along with us.”

Well, that made some sense, at least. More so than other things had, anyway. “So _that’s_ why you wanted to take the prop over and rent a car here.” She laughed and shook her head. Fergus hadn’t bothered to explain why they couldn’t take one of their own vehicles to Kirkwall. “So after my two days of meetings … what? The rental stays with you and Jasper and I walk home?” They followed the bellhop to the elevator, discussing the logistics of hiking over the Waking Sea in any reasonable amount of time.

“Well, you _could_ try that,” Fergus joked, shaking his head. “Or, I figured we’d drive you back to the airport and you'd take _your_ car back to Denerim from there.” He slipped the bellhop a few dollars once they reached the room and unloaded the trolley, adding a little extra to thank him for not freaking out about the rather large mabari that insisted on walking next to the stack of suitcases. “I honestly wasn’t expecting you to come, sister.” Once the door was shut and they were as alone as they were going to get, he turned to face her. “Do you want to call Alistair and let him know you made it alive?” When she shook her head and couldn’t meet his eyes, the brotherly instincts kicked in. “Why? What’s wrong? Who was at the door yesterday?”

Her voice was faint, made even more difficult to hear by the fact that she wouldn’t look at him. “I … don’t have my phone.”

Fergus stared at his sister. “You don’t have it?” he repeated carefully. In all the time he’s known her that just didn’t seem possible. She was always the careful one with her phone; never lost it, broke it, forgot it. She just didn’t. “That’s not like you. What happened?” Firm hands moved to her shoulders and guided her to the corner of the bed, with Jasper moving to lay on the floor next to her feet as Fergus took a seat on the bed next to his sister. “Why did you decide to come to this thing? You _hate_ these sorts of meetings. And then you tell me you don’t have your phone? What’s going on, pup?”

So not fair, using their father’s nickname for her. She would have told him anyway, but she didn’t have a clue where to begin. He was right, of course. All of this was extremely out of character for her. The only thing odder would have been leaving Jasper behind. And if she had done _that_ , they would have never made it out of Highever before he started questioning her. “Can … can we talk about this tomorrow. I really just want to sleep right now.”


	3. Saturday - AM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Regan accidentally left her phone behind. Alistair struggles to figure out where she's gone. Regan learns something new about her brother's past.

**4:00 AM**

He stared at her phone, the lock screen showing the ten missed calls he’d tried making since finding the notes and flowers and the brief nap he’d managed to get when he passed out from exhaustion. That was before he found her phone wedged in between the couch cushions. She was gone. She left her phone behind so she didn’t have to talk to him. No, wait. He didn’t think that was _quite_ correct. “If she had purposely left her phone, it would have been on a table, or the bed, or … well, anywhere out in the open so I could have seen it, not shoved down between cushions, right?” Alistair looked expectantly at the framed photo on the wall as if waiting for an answer. It had been taken at the Dairren’s wedding and he still couldn’t get over how beautiful she had looked, and how nervous he had been admitting his feelings for her.

He tried to think of places she might go. Who could he call? Should he even start looking for her? Did she want to see him, after all that apparently happened? What _did_ happen? He could drive to Highever. Surely Duncan wouldn’t care if he missed a couple days for something like this. Drive to Highever, find her and try to explain. No; she obviously didn’t want to see him, did she? She’d said she would give him that chance before leaving, then hadn’t shown up. Had something happened to her; something that could stop her from making it to the mall like she said she would? Going to Highever should be his last resort; he’d try calling first, somehow. “Where are you?”

 

 

**9:20 AM**

Fergus waited until breakfast had been delivered and the waiter exited the room before flopping on the bed next to his sister. “Alright. You’ve slept. Now spill.” He tugged her into a seated position and handed over a plate of food. “Why don’t you have your phone? Why did you decide to actually _come_ to this meeting? You’ve never voluntarily come to _any_ meetings when you could attend over the phone.”

Regan sighed softly. Of course he wouldn’t forget. At least he waited until they’d gotten food before bringing it up. “I … I was kind of in a daze when I packed. That delivery during the call was flowers for … Alistair kissed someone … I guess we aren’t as ….” Well, this was going well.

“Wait; what was that about Alistair kissing someone?”

 Trust Fergus to latch on to _that_ part. He rarely got to play the protective older brother when it came to men; not because there weren’t guys that deserved it, but because she hardly ever let him know when one had hurt her. He knew about Nate and Vaughn, obviously. But Temmerly and Braden … she’d kept them to herself; never told anyone until she’d told Alistair. “I … he ….” Regan took a breath and covered her face with her hands. She took another deep breath before forcing the story out.

“You … remember that delivery person who interrupted the call yesterday?” She barely waited for his nod before going on. It was going to be hard enough talking about this. “They were dropping off roses and a box of … something. Red and orange roses. There was a card. It … it said _“Last night was wonderful. It was so good to see you again, and ….”_ Her voice broke, hand reaching down to rest on Jasper’s head for strength. _“and … I can’t stop thinking about that thing you did with your hands.”_ They were for Alistair. He said he was working late the night before … the _last night_ the card referred to.” She made finger quotes when saying ‘last night’, but it didn’t make her feel any better.

 Fergus frowned and wrapped an arm around her. “Any idea who it was from? Or what was in the box?”

She shook her head slowly. “No; there was no name. He didn’t get home until, well I don’t know when last night. I passed out on the couch and he must have moved me when he got home, because I woke up in bed. And the next day, yesterday … I … I went up to see him at work.” Ugh; why had she decided to come on this trip? She could have just stayed home, hidden in her room, and not thought about any of this nonsense. “And there was this woman … kissing him.” 

Whatever he’d been expecting, it certainly hadn’t been that. Fergus gave his sister a quick squeeze before wondering aloud, “Was he kissing back?”

“I … um, I dunno. What do you mean?”

He couldn’t help but laugh a little. “I mean, was it all her – did she take him by surprise, or was he a willing participant?” Fergus could see she still wasn’t catching on, which surprised him a little; she was usually much faster on the uptake. Then again, normally they weren’t discussing the man she obviously was head over heels for. “Did he grab her, pull her to him? Arms around her? All the things he does when you kiss him. Or did he freeze? Shove her away? Step away from her?”

She pursed her lips, trying to remember if she’d seen anything before shaking her head. “I … Jasper and I didn’t stick around to watch. Not after the whole foot-pop thing she did.” She ran her fingers through her hair and bit back a whimper. Maker’s ass, it hurt even _thinking_ he might have responded in kind. But she didn’t _know_ if he had. And she hadn’t waited … or talked to him … or even _tried_ to find out what happened.

“Sister, I’m going to say something and I don’t want you to take it the wrong way.” Fergus reached out to lift her face so he could look her in the eye. “You are –“ 

“You think I’m an idiot, don’t you?”

The teasing grin that answered said plenty, but Fergus nodded anyway. “Listen, I know I don’t know the man nearly as well as you do, but just based on what I’ve seen … he is absolutely _crazy_ about you. I can see it every time he looks at you.” A brotherly squeeze of her shoulder was accompanied by a small bit of advice, “Give him a chance to explain, at least, OK? Find out if he _actually_ kissed back before you get too angry with him.”

“You don’t think he did?”

Fergus shook his head, looking far guiltier than Regan had ever seen him. “No, and do you know why?” Her answering head-shake earned another smile and an embarrassed shrug. “You remember Nancine?” It took a minute, but Regan nodded, finally remembering the woman Fergus had dated, _briefly_ before Oriana. “She pulled something kind of like that after I started seeing Oriana. Sent me a package – lingerie … not my color, mind you. I opened it in front of Oriana, thinking it came from her. It took _days_ to convince Ori that I wasn’t back with her. And when I finally managed to make it clear, Nancine showed up at the restaurant where I was supposed to meet Ori and … kissed me. Ori had a clear view.”

She stared at her brother, stunned. Neither one of them had ever mentioned this before. “Wait; was this when Oriana didn’t speak to you for almost a month?” She never got all the details; Fergus had only told her that there had been a misunderstanding. Oriana had said even less. Of course, this was early enough in their relationship that the two women weren’t really comfortable discussing that relationship. “Maker’s ass; how did you end up fixing it?”

“A _lot_ of groveling.” Fergus laughed softly and shook his head. “Ori and I were still kind of new; remember? I … went a little overboard. Called her every day for a week; only once a day, so I wasn’t _entirely_ crazy, and then every other day for the rest of the time. Even sent flowers a few times. She refused every one of them.” He rubbed the back of his neck, still shocked at how everything had worked out. He’d honestly been afraid Oriana would never have anything to do with him again, and how relieved when she’d finally let him back in.

“What finally changed her mind?”

 

 

**11:00 AM**

“Why didn’t I put her brother’s number in my phone?”

Alistair stared at the lock-screen on her phone. He’d tried all the codes he could think of and had, unfortunately, managed to lock her phone for … he wasn’t even sure how long it was locked for this time. Was it possible to lock it permanently? A defeated whimper escaped him before he swallowed back the next one. Calling Highever was out; he’d tried getting ahold of the Rutherfords to see if Trev had Fergus’ number, but they were apparently out of town. He’d just have to drive there. That’s where her note said she was going, right? He’d go there and find her and explain and everything would be ok, wouldn’t it?

Focused, he threw a few things into the nearest duffle and headed out, dialing Duncan’s personal cell as he headed to his car. He wasn’t going to be able to focus on work until this got sorted out. And he would _never_ forgive Goldanna for that stunt … for any of it. “Duncan? I … I need to leave town for a couple days. Regan and I had a … I don’t even know what happened, but she left. Her phone is here, but she and Jasper are gone and I … I need to … to do something.” Duncan’s reply was thankfully brief, and positive. Being willing to work over so often was finally paying off. “I’ll let you know. Thanks again.” He flung the duffle onto the passenger seat as he climbed into his car. At least he knew where her brother lived. That made one thing slightly easier on him.


	4. Saturday - PM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alistair does the only thing he can think of. Regan runs into someone unexpected. Fergus does his best to take his sister's mind off of things

**1:00 PM**

Alistair found himself on the Cousland’s porch in record time, waiting for someone to answer the door. He had no clue if Oriana worked outside the home or not. He knew Fergus would be working, so he was probably in the office, wherever that was, and Oren was at school. So he waited. And waited. And waited. Maker’s breath, why didn’t he think to get at least _one_ of her relatives’ numbers? He was about to head back to his car and wait there, so he didn’t look like a total psychopath when a voice came from behind.

“Alistair? What are you doing here?”

“Oh, thank the Maker; Oriana!” He reached for her, was about to give her a huge, relieved hug, when he saw the bags of groceries in her arms. “Here, let me help you.”

She was terribly confused, allowing Alistair to take the bags with no argument. Unlocking and opening the door, she stepped back. “What are you doing here?” She knew something had happened, she just didn’t know what. When Regan had shown up at the house the afternoon before, she’d been … not herself. She wouldn’t talk about it, though. Just told Fergus she was ready to head out whenever he was. But _something_ was wrong.

Alistair waited until they’d gotten all the groceries before answering. “Have you seen Regan? I … she ….” He sighed, digging fingers into his hair. How could he possibly explain what happened when he didn’t understand completely. “I don’t _know_ exactly. An ex-girlfriend had something delivered to the apartment with a note that … Maker’s breath, Oriana, the note hinted at things that _never_ happened. Things I’d never _want_ to happen, never mind _let_ happen.

“I don’t even know how she knew where I lived.” He started pacing, trying to keep from slipping into a panic. “I didn’t live in that building when we were together. She said she ran into Cailan, but I’ve never told _him_ where I live either. Not exactly.” He knew he was starting to ramble, but there was nothing he could do to stop it. “But the flowers showed up at the apartment while Regan was working and she read the card and I … I guess she believed it? I found a note on the bed saying she was going to come by the mall before heading here, but … she never did. Come by the mall, I mean. Is she here? I … I need to talk to her.”

“Have you tried calling her?”

Alistair held up Regan’s cell. “I found it in the couch cushions. I … couldn’t figure out her pass code, and its dead now anyway.” He tried to laugh, failing miserably. “I don’t have any of your numbers, so I just … I came here to find her. Please tell me she’s here?”

 

 

**2:30 PM**

“Come on.” Fergus all but dragged his sister out of the car. “We’re going to have a little fun; take your mind off of all this, and meet with a couple of the big wigs we’ll be dealing with Monday.”

She looked out and frowned the banner in the distance, hanging above a row of turnstiles proclaiming that this was the premiere theme park in the Marches. ”I’m not in the mood, Fergus.” She was tired. She’d spent ages trying to remember Alistair’s phone number to call and … say _something_. She had no clue what. But she couldn’t remember his number. Once it ended up in her phone, she didn’t bother committing it to memory. Cell phone numbers weren’t in the phone book and they didn’t keep a landline in the apartment. She’d tried calling her phone, on the off chance he’d found it, but it went straight to voice mail. Either it was dead, or broken. “Why can’t you just let me wallow until the meeting?”

“Because I’m your brother and annoying you is what I do best.”

She rolled her eyes and let herself be pulled from the passenger seat, crossing her arms and quite obviously sulking as Fergus let Jasper out of the back and they made their way across the parking lot. It was bad enough she felt like an idiot for not even giving Alistair a chance to explain. _Now_ she was going to have to put on a happy face and try to impress a bunch of strangers before a meeting that she didn’t want to attend. “So who are we meeting?”

Fergus didn’t have a chance to more than open his mouth; someone with a heavy Starkhaven accent called for his attention. “Fergus Cousland; it’s good to see you again.”

 

 

**4:23 PM**

“Maker’s ass; I can’t believe _you_ are the one mother was trying to set me up with!’ Regan laughed, gently shoving the auburn-haired man toward the empty stall at the front of the roller coaster. “When she first told me she wanted a meeting with the Vaels regarding their youngest, all she could talk about was the connections it would bring.” 

Sebastian smirked, turning to tug her into line with him. “If you’re making _me_ ride in the front of this thing, you’re coming with me.” He caught sight of the others – Fergus, Flora Harriman, and Corbinian Vael, all waiting in various other queues for seats further back. Regan’s mabari was curled up, unsecured, on the opposite side of the platform, near the exit ramp, waiting for the crew to complete the ride. He always admired the Ferelden ability to put such trust in their dogs, and the mabari for being so deserving of that trust. “I’m sure that wasn’t the _only_ thing she talked about.”

Regan nodded, a teasing grin breaking through. “Well, she also said something about rakish good looks, but I figured that had to be an exaggeration based on the photos we had access to.” She shrugged, resting her hands behind her head, light laughter still in her voice. “Father, on the other hand, made a _very_ big deal over the number of women the mysterious ‘Bastian had taken to bed, according to the tabloids.”

Sebastian groaned, covering his eyes with one hand. “Maker’s breath; I will _never_ live that down.” He’d screwed up, a lot, growing up. He knew that now. Heck, he knew that then, too. He just didn’t care at the time. He didn’t want the responsibility being thrust on him at the time. His brothers had all seemed so much more … prepared for their roles. He hadn’t wanted it, so he acted out. “It’s probably a good thing we didn’t meet back then. I don’t think you would have liked me much.”

“And who said she likes you now?”

Regan laughed as Flora’s voice came from three corrals down. “He’s not _so_ bad, Flora; I’ve certainly known worse.” She hated to admit she was even slightly curious what might have happened, had her mother actually been successful introducing them back then. Then again, given her luck, he’d probably have done what all the others had. Well, maybe all the others; she still hadn’t managed to reach Alistair to discuss things. “Void, I’ve _dated_ worse.” The train pulled into the station and the gates opened, allowing the group to climb in and buckle up. “Anyone up for the water park after this?”

 

 

**8:13 PM**

“I’m sure they’re just busy, Alistair.” Oriana kept the frown at her phone hidden; the poor boy didn’t need to know that this was unusual in the slightest. Fergus had not answered his phone all day and Alistair was already getting more and more nervous as time went on. “Fergus did say he had some events scheduled over the weekend for this conference, and if it’s a work thing, he can’t really be on his phone. I’m sure he will call as soon as he can.”

Alistair rubbed his eyes. She had a point. He hated to admit she had a point. It was just hard. He didn’t know what he’d done, what she _thought_ he’d done. And he didn’t know how to make it right. He wasn’t even angry with her for jumping to conclusions; he just wanted to talk to her. “Thank you, Oriana,” he sighed. “I just … I miss her and I hate even thinking that I might have hurt her somehow. I want to –“                                                                            

***RING***

Oriana’s phone lit up, cutting Alistair off with a shrill jingle of an old-style phone. She grinned, showing Alistair Fergus’ photo on the caller ID briefly before touching the screen to answer. “Hello love. How was your trip?” She listened for a few moments, trying not to smile watching Alistair near leap out of his skin. She could tell he was trying not to ask questions or reach for her phone or otherwise be a pest while waiting. But she also knew that this was something that needed to be sorted out soon. “You don’t say? It’s possible the meetings will be done sooner than expected? I’m sure I can pull Oren out of school a day or two earlier than expected if you’d like.” She listened for another few beats, nodding to herself. “I’ll take care of it, dear. Does Regan happen to be around? There is … someone here who is anxious to speak with her.”

Alistair froze, eyes wide as he waited for an answer. Was she with him? Would she even be willing to speak with him? Maker, what if she didn’t want to talk to him? He wasn’t sure what he’d do if she was that angry with him. It took him several heartbeats to realize that Oriana was holding her phone in his direction.

“Alistair; she’ll speak with you. It’s OK.”

He could feel his pulse quicken as he lifted her phone to his ear. “Reg … Regan?” 

“Alistair.”

He couldn’t get a read on her voice. The one word answer sounded almost cold, but it _was_ just one word. Maker’s breath, was she really mad at him? “How …?” No, that’s not what he wanted to start with. He needed to try again. “I swear, dearheart, I ….” 

“Alistair, I don’t want to _talk_ to you.” She cut him off quickly, ignoring Fergus’ stunned look. She had thought long and hard about how she’d wanted to handle this, and talking over the phone wasn’t going to cut it.

His face fell. He was certain Oriana could hear his heart shatter as her words echoed in his head. “But I ….”

She could almost _see_ him curling into a ball as soon as the words left her mouth. Shit; that wasn’t how she wanted this to go. Quickly, she cut Alistair off again. “I meant I don’t want to do this over the phone, Alistair. I want you to come _here,_ to Kirkwall … with Oriana and Oren … _tomorrow_. Fergus has a plane coming to bring you all here.” There was a strange clatter on the other end of the phone. And then there was silence. “Alistair? Are you ok? Are you _there_?” She was about to say something else when a voice came over the phone again.

“We’ll be there.”


	5. Sunday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alistair, Oriana, and Oren have finally made it to Kirkwall. What happens when he finally meets up with Regan? Will things get hashed out?

**5:00 PM**

The last 20 hours had been a blur. It had been a near-mad rush to help Oriana pack for herself and Oren. He didn’t worry about himself; he had a few changes of clothes with him. That would have to do. The trip to the airport the next morning had been subdued. Oren stayed asleep, so Oriana carried him while Alistair juggled all their bags. And the plane. They didn’t have to go through the normal airport routine, their bags getting only the briefest of scans through the x-ray machines before heading out to the tarmac and boarding a plane bearing the Cousland laurel. Neither Fergus nor Regan had been there to meet them at the Kirkwall airfield. Instead, a tall woman with long dark hair and laughing eyes picked them up.

Regan waited until Fergus brought Alistair, Oriana and Oren to their rooms before asking Alistair to take a walk with her. She knew she sounded serious when she asked, watched his eyes widen in fear as he nodded. She tried to smile, hoping she could at least reassure him a little. “I just … want to enjoy the sunshine while we talk.” That sounded lame, even to her ears.

Alistair followed quietly as she led him to a small bench hidden in the trees of a nearby park. He had no idea how she knew it was here; it wasn’t visible from the pathway at all, and no signage to direct one’s attention to it. He took a seat and watched her, trying not to fidget too much until she sat next to him. They sat in silence for a moment, looking around awkwardly until he finally couldn’t take it any longer. “Dearheart, I _swear_ I had nothing to do with Goldanna showing up or having things delivered to the house. I don’t even know what she was referring to with that card. She showed up at work out of nowh-”

“Did you kiss her back?” Her voice was faint, barely audible. It didn’t help that she wasn’t meeting his eyes.

Did he _what_? Kiss her back? How did she know that his ex … kissed …? Maker’s breath! She _had_ made it to the mall, after all. And she had seen Goldanna kiss him! But why hadn’t she said anything? “No! I promise you, there was _no_ kissing back.” He shook his head violently at the sheer thought of kissing that shrew again. “She caught me off guard. I mean, who expects their ex to show up and suddenly _kiss_ them?” He ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. “As soon as my brain made sense of what was going on, I pushed her away and told her to leave. I told her I never wanted to see –”

“I’m an idiot.” Fergus was right. She was a complete and total idiot. So much could have been avoided if she had just _talked_ to him. “I am _so_ sorry, Alistair. I should have talked to you before leaving. Even after … no, _especially_ after seeing her kiss you.” Regan dug her fingers into her hair, tried to keep her thoughts in order but nothing was coming out coherently. “I just … everything that happened before, with Braden and Temmerly …. I mean, I _know_ you’re not them … could never be like them. I just … I just ... I feel like I’ve given you ways to hurt me that they never had, and I’m … I’m scared, so I’m jumping to stupid conclusions even though I know deep down that they’re wrong. I’m so afraid I’m ruining things between us and I don’t know how t-.”

Alistair swooped in, pressing his lips to hers, silencing the stream of words that kept spilling out from them. They tasted salty, laced with tears that he hadn’t seen her shed. There were no words capable of expressing just how he felt; none he could come up with anyway. She was always better at stringing together heartfelt sentences than he was. There was a series of heartbeats where he thought she might pull away from him, was starting to mentally prepare the words he’d need to try to explain. And then her hand was in his hair, the other at his waist, gripping and pulling him closer until she was practically in his lap. “Regan.” He was breathless when they finally broke apart, heart in his throat. “Just know … I could _never_ do something like that to you. It’s not even that I wouldn’t; I _couldn’t_. You have my heart and soul. It would be like ripping a part of myself away. I know I’m not … not great with words, but I … I have to ask you something. And I don’t need an answer right this second, but … will you –“

“Regan! I didn’t realize you knew this park well enough to find the Lover’s Rest.”

Regan let out a surprised meep just before falling off Alistair’s lap and onto the ground with a grunt. She missed the frustrated look on Alistair’s face, scrambling to her feet just in time to block the new arrival’s view of the rising issue in Alistair’s trousers. It hadn’t been entirely accidental that she’d chosen a bench so thoroughly hidden. She just hadn’t realized someone she knew would be looking for it too. “Sebastian!” She tried to calm her racing pulse and at least _look_ like she wasn’t caught completely off guard. Blast him and his less-than-impeccable timing; she wanted to know what Alistair was trying to ask! “I tend to explore when I get bored; you remember that.” She looked over at the dark-haired woman with him and smiled. “And this is …?”

“This is Rowan Hawke; my wife.”


End file.
